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REACH NEWS
Thank you for visiting our News page. Here you will find information on current eventsand previous events at the REsource for Advancing Children's Health.
If you would like more information about the progams and upcoming events that support needs in the child mental health community, please contact our Planning Director, Melanie Louis at MelanieLouis@thereachinstitute.org.
CURRENT EVENTS:
1. Four New National Training Programs
2. K.I.D.S. Alliance for Katrina/Rita Children
3. Mental Health Interventions for Youth in Foster Care
4. "Do The Write Thing" Radio Series Announced at National Press Club
5. Major Study Findings on ADHD Outcomes Released to Media
1. Four New National Training programs in Psychotherapy, Pediatric Pharmacotherapy, Parent Support, and combined Evidence-based Approaches Launched
- REACH experts from leading universities across the country have now officially launched CATIE, the Child and Adolescent Training Institute for Evidence-based Interventions. This one-of-a-kind institute provides critical training in evidence-based interventions to child mental health clinicians across the country. Each training covers a common disorder area (ADHD/ODD, Anxiety, Depression, Post-Traumatic Stress Syndrome) and utilizes proven, evidence-based treatment methods (Cognitive-Behavior and Behavior therapy). All trainings and associated treatment manuals are designed with the same "look and feel", so that once clnicians have learned an evidence-based therapy for one disorder area, it is quite easy to learn treatments for any of the other disorders. Train-the-trainers training is also available, so that once clincians have been trained and certified, they are eligible to train others to provide the same training.
- Working with leading child psychiatrists and pediatricians across the US, REACH is hosting 3 separate intensive, hands-on trainings in the safe and effective use of psychotherapeutic medications in children and adolescents. To date, the Pediatric Pharmacotherapy Program (PPP) Mini-Fellowship has assisted nearly 100 prescribers from the US and Canada in these 6-month trainings. 3 new trainings are scheduled in New York, Chicago, and California.
- REACH has developed a "Parent Empowerment Program," designed to support parents in learning how to advocate for their children when they have emotional, behavioral, or learning problems. Using parent mentors/coaches who have gained extensive experience in the health care system through advocating for their own child, these programs assist new parents in learning how to get the best possible care for their child.
- For clinicians working in settings where integrated assessment, diagnostic, and treatment services are needed (child welfare, juvenile justice, mental health settings, school health clinics, and residentail programs), REACH provides extensive, hands-on training via its EASSY program, Evidence-based Approaches in Systems Serving Youth
For more information on these and other training opportunities, please click on this link or contact Dr. Jensen at training@thereachinstitute.org.
2. K.I.D.S. Alliance formed for Katrina/Rita's Children and Familiies
- Members of the REACH Institute, in conjunction with the Children's Health Fund and Latham & Watkins, LLC, recently returned from a child summit held in New Orleans that focused on identifying and intervening on behalf of children and adolescents who are suffering post traumatic stress disorder, depression and anxiety in Hurricane Katrina's aftermath. Funding and legal expertise was provided by the law firm of Latham and Watkins via partner Juli Wilson Marshall (also a REACH board member), along with the Children's Health Fund, which received a grant from the Clinton-Bush Foundation. Family member stakeholders, policymakers, and mental health experts from the REACH Institute, CHF and Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas, all gathered to address the harrowing experiences they witnessed and deal with the turmoil and repercussions children are continue to experience in the face of little continuing aid and support. Areas of need identified during the summit were many. A sorely needed infrastructure is now being developed to help exchange information amongst the state-level and community workers, as well as families. REACH staff and its Latham & Watkins partner, working with Katrina families and professionals, drafted a strategic blueprint of "where to go", in terms of how to best create a supportive ongoing procress that will directly benefit the children who were traumatized by the disaster. Initial deliberations resulted in the formation of the K.I.D.S. Alliance (Kids in Disaster Situations) to provide ongoing support and assistance to these children, families, and to their healthcare providers and schools.
- In May of 2007, REACH Board member Juli Wilson Marshall died in a tragic accident, but in her memory, almost 100 friends and organizations have since contributed in her memory to the K.I.D.S. Alliance. Contributed funds will be used to provide scholarships for training of parents and families in how to effectively advocate for their children in the wake of disaster situations such as Katrina/Rita.
- The REACH Institute will continue to support the K.I.D.S. Alliance members through fund-raising and the provision of ongoing support and training.
3. Enhancing Mental Health Treatment for Youth in Foster Care
- Casey Research Services, Casey Family Programs, the REACH Institute, North Shore Hospitals, Harvard Medical School, and The Annie E. Casey Foundation are collaborating to improve the mental health functioning of youth in foster care by focusing on four related conditions that limit the functioning and development of youth in out-of-home care; and where there are well-formulated treatments: (1) Depression, (2) Anxiety and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorders (PTSD), (3) ADHD, and (4) Impulsive aggression. It is anticipated that this project will be deployed in two selected cities, one each in New York and Texas. However, local (state- and city-level) partners must be identified, both from state-city governments with interest and oversight in these programs, as well as from provider agencies that are often contracted to deliver foster care services. For more information on this project, please visit our project page.
4. Press Conference at National Press Club, July 18, 2007 for "Do The Write Thing" Radio Series
- A new series of public radio "spots" consisting of essays written by 50 of the 100,000 youth participating in the National Campaign to Stop Violence (Do The Write Thing, www.dtwt.org) was announced at the National Press Club in Washington, DC, July 18, 2007. This upcoming series, narrated by Soledad O'Brien, was described by Daniel Callister, Esq., chair and founder of Do the Write Thing, and member of the REACH Board of Directors. REACH Director Peter S. Jensen, M.D. also participated in the press conference, addressing issues related to benefits of youths' participation in the National Campaign to Stop Violence.
5. New Findings on ADHD Outcomes Released to Media, July 20, 2007
- On July 20, 2007, 4 papers from a major national study were made available to the press, in a press announcement released by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). Most children treated for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) showed sustained improvement after three years in this major follow-up study. Yet increased risk for behavioral problems, including delinquency and substance use, remained higher than normal. The study followed-up children who had participated in the Multimodal Treatment Study of Children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (MTA).
- In various radio, TV, and newspaper interviews REACH Director Peter S. Jensen, M.D. emphasized that the findings indicated a message of hope for many children and families struggling with ADHD. Jensen was the lead author of the first paper, and special editor of the series in the August issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry. "We were struck by the remarkable improvement in symptoms and functioning across all treatment groups," explained Jensen. "Our results suggest that medication can make a long-term difference for some children if it's continued with optimal intensity, and not started or added too late in a child's clinical course," added Jensen. Of special note was the troubling finding that a subgroup of children with ADHD (1 in 6) ,despite their showing initial benefit during the first 14 months of intensive treatment, actually lost all of their initial gains over the next two years, when treatment intensity and follow-up declined. "Our findings show that we can do a lot better for many children, but our health care system often fails them," Jensen noted.
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PREVIOUS EVENTS
Report on: Position Paper distributed to the U.S. Senate
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